With Laura Miano

Hello hello hello, I’m so looking forward to diving into the Laura Miano universe this morning. We really appreciate you taking a moment to chat with us.

Hi Emily, I’m excited to be chatting here!!

I know it's early, but how has your morning been so far? Any lush morning rituals?

Yes! I let myself sleep in a little this morning (unusual for me), then had a good dance to some fun music. I've been starting my day with a dance most days lately, and I love it 🥰

Oh, I absolutely love that! What's on the hit list? What have you been grooving out to?

I’ve been going through a Charlie’s Angels moment lately. Heaven Must Be Missing An Angel by Tavares has been my top song this last week.

Ahhh yesss the Charlies Angels soundtracks are such a vibe! You have just inspired my soundtrack for the day 🙏

We often hear your wise words about love, sex, and relationships, but I'd love to start by going back to the beginning if that's okay with you.

Thank you. Yes, let’s go back!

I know you're based in Melbourne, but has Melbourne always been home?

Melbourne has always been home, yes. Born and raised.

The born and raised melbournite…a rare gem. What was it like growing up in this beautiful city? Has being a sexologist always been the dream?

It was fun. I have lots of childhood memories playing out in the sun - backyard waterslides, jumping on the trampoline - things like that.

The sexology dream came later in life! I was always fascinated by the power of sex and erotic films and super comfortable talking about sex with my friends, but didn't think to turn it into a career until I was in my early 20s. I was previously working in fashion but decided to go back to school at 22 and study psychology, then the next step was sexology.

It’s such an interesting area of study and I imagine you learn a lot about your own psyche during the process. Is there anything you learnt either about yourself or about people that has surprised you the most going into this practice?

One big thing was that being your authentic sexual self doesn't mean you will be having lots of sex and being super overt with your sexuality. For some people, this is the case, but not for all! It's about finding your sweet spot. Sometimes culturally we equate lots of sex with a thriving sex life. But it doesn’t always apply.

So true, accepting authenticity at all points of the sexual spectrum.

Absolutely!

Even though we have a very long way to go and it sometimes feels like as a society we take two steps forward one step back. I feel like in recent years we have seen a shift in the language used around sex and consent. Working in the field and seeing clients regularly as well as talking with the media, can you share any thoughts on this path we are moving in.

There has been, yes. Even in my 6 years working, I’ve noticed clients come to sessions with a far better understanding of consent these days than they did when I first started working. I was teaching the basics of consent a lot more back then. 

For example, these days people often already know that being convinced into sex is not giving consent. 

It’s so great to see the shift in people’s understanding!

For someone wanting to follow in your footsteps, what guidance would you offer to someone considering a career in sexology?

Study hard, network, and put yourself out there! You may find people are fascinated by your job, uncomfortable by it or even sometimes intimidated. I always get an interesting reaction, which is part of the fun.

Nonetheless, it’s such an incredibly rewarding field. I couldn’t recommend it more!

Beautiful advice.

I bet you have some stories on interesting interactions with people learning about what you do…any you can share?

It’s always fun when I’m in a setting where sex would typically never be discussed but then when I mention my job, I’m all of a sudden talking about sex toys 🤣 

Ubers, the post office - those kinds of settings.

I love that, bringing fun conversation to every setting!

Outside of your professional work, what keeps you inspired? Who are some of your biggest inspirations in life, love and creativity? What's on the Laura Miano mood board?

Spontaneity, dancing, laughing with my friends, seeing people around me succeed in their own goals, getting dressed up, beautiful dinners, dirty martinis, getting philosophical, my new 3 month old baby niece, playing Italian cards with my Nonna while she tells me her life stories, reading at a cafe on a Sunday morning, tanning at the beach, leaning into romance.

Posmo is an absolutely gorgeous brand, working with a lot of new businesses I know how much blood sweat and tears goes into launching a brand, I’d love to know how it all came about?

It started when I was doing my master's. My now business partner floated the idea of a sex toy store, and I loved it. We wanted to normalise sex toys and sexual wellness by creating a brand that approached both with an aesthetic lens. The other big part was Posmo's philosophy, postmodern sexuality, where the word 'Posmo' came from. Postmodern sexuality promotes the idea that human sexuality is diverse and very complex, far beyond what sexual labels capture, and that we can affirm our sexuality at a deeper level by removing restrictive labels. I really loved this theory when I first heard it and knew we needed to create the store around it. Everything just fell into place from there!

Valentines day is coming up, are you a fan of valentines?

I love it! Any excuse to be wined and dined.

Do you have any tips for couples or singles that are wanting to spice things up for valentines day?

Choose an activity that makes you feel sexy and connected. If it’s dinner out, get dressed up and enjoy the process of making yourself feel more desirable! 

You can also incorporate toys if you are feeling cheeky - especially this one. You can put it in your panties and have your partner control it from their phone. Definitely a naughty way to spice up your Valentine’s Day

Okay, final question…What's next on the horizon for Laura?

From a sex therapy perspective, I want to continue refining my clinical skills. I absolutely love seeing my clients and want to be the best sex therapist I possibly can be. 

From a business perspective, I am focusing on growing Miano Clinical Sexology (my practice). Very excited at what’s in the making! 

For Posmo, we are going through a bit of a shift at the moment and have some big things to announce in the upcoming few months. 

Exciting times!

Thank you dearly for your time this morning, it was lovely to peek behind the curtain a little.

Thanks darling.